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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: plane · cell · firm · bowl · cold · clip · object · leaves

  1. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. plane — a tool
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. cold — an illness
  4. object — to protest
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. firm — a company
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. cell — in biology
  12. cold — not warm
  13. firm — decided
  14. clip — for paper
  15. firm — steady
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. clip — to cut
  19. cell — a phone
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. object — an aim
  22. clip — a video
  23. object — a thing
  24. cold — the Cold War

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com